Jodie Foster: 'Every man over 30 has to start thinking about their part' in sexual misconduct

Three of the women accusing Dustin Hoffman of sexual misconduct - Kathryn Rossetter, Anna Graham Hunter and Cori Thomas - discuss their experiences with the actor and explain why they waited so long to come forward. (Dec. 20)
AP

Jodie Foster is the latest actress to show her support for sexual harassment accusers.(Photo: Joe Maher, Getty Images)

As accusers continue to come forward amidst a national reckoning over sexual harassment, Jodie Foster is eager to hear the other side's perspective.

"We really are at a watershed moment," Foster told USA TODAY, while promoting an upcoming episode of Netflix's Black Mirror that she directed (premiering Dec. 29). "This part has been painful: these wonderful, amazing narratives that take into consideration everybody’s part in it. I’m really interested and looking forward to the men’s point of view, and what comes next in terms of therapy."

For nearly five decades, the two-time Oscar winner has forged a successful career in front of and behind the camera, breaking through at just 12 years old in Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver in 1976. Having worked in Hollywood since she was a young child, she's quick to point out that men abusing their power is not just a longstanding problem in the entertainment industry, but a conversation that should be had in all workplaces.

"It's every industry. It's not just one socioeconomic bracket or one complexion," Foster said. "Pretty much every man over 30 has to really look and start thinking about their part. And I guarantee, lots of it is unconscious. When you’ve been in a privileged position where you haven’t had to look at your part, you didn’t 100% understand you were in a bubble. It’s an interesting time for men.

"I have two sons (ages 16 and 19), and I know their perspective," she continued. "They go to a great school that has put them through the wringer about what consent is, what is humanism, what’s integrity. I just wish my generation had the benefit of that, and that everybody had the benefit of that."

Foster, 55, made her feature directorial debut with 1991's Little Man Tate, having since helmed episodes of Netflix's House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, and Julia Roberts' 2016 thriller Money Monster. While she believes that more women should be behind the scenes on set and at the studio level, she also stresses that it's not the end-all-be-all solution to eradicating sexual harassment.

Jodie Foster, right, and George Clooney on the set of 'Money Monster.'(Photo: Atsushi Nishijima)

"There’s more women in executive positions than you can imagine, so I don’t really think that changed anything," Foster said. "It didn’t even change women directors. There's still just as few women directors as when there (were) four studio heads that were women. That didn’t change anything, so I'm not sure.

"Maybe because I started making movies when there were no women, I saw how healthy it was when women came into the picture," she added. "When I’d go out on movie sets (before), it was like 175 guys in a small town. The second that they started normalizing and bringing women into the picture, which also brought children into the picture, then all of a sudden it wasn’t so unhealthy and people were happier. It didn’t feel like they were in some boot camp somewhere."

Ultimately, Foster hopes that the #MeToo movement will learn from the "mistakes and triumphs" of other social justice crusades, and that there will be "some kind of truth and reconciliation" in the aftermath.

"I’m looking forward to a new millennial woman that knows that she can say no," Foster said. "But honestly, I think what most women want is just for it to stop. They don’t really want to have a lawsuit, they don’t want to have to go on CBS This Morning 400 times. They'd actually just like it to stop and that'll be the good part."

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Recent allegations that movie mogul Harvey Weinstein sexually assaulted and harassed women for years have come to light, ushering in a cataclysmic career downfall for him and many more. See the following cultural power players who have been accused of improper behavior. John Carucci, AP

Morgan Freeman, 80, an Oscar-winning actor was accused of sexual harassment, unwanted touching and other inappropriate behavior by eight people, according to a CNN investigation published May 24, 2018. The report details an alleged pattern of making unwanted advances on women while he was on movie sets and at other events. Freeman denied the accusations. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

R. Kelly, 51, a singer, has been accused of sexual abuse, sexual coercion and physical violence by multiple accusers, who have come forward in the past year, alleging that the singer committed acts of sexual coercion and physical abuse. A 2017 Buzzfeed story reported that Kelly rented homes in Atlanta and Chicago for groups of women who allegedly perform sexual favors for him. He has denied the allegations. FREDERIC J. BROWN, AFP/Getty Images

Luc Besson, 59, a French film director, was accused of rape by an unnamed 27-year-old woman who alleges Besson put something in her tea that left her unconscious, according to a report from The Associated Press on May 19, 2018. She accuses him of touching and penetrating her without her consent at the Hôtel Bristol in Paris. Authorities are investigating the complaint. Besson has denied the allegations. Andy Wong, AP

Junot Díaz, 49, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, was accused of accused of sexual harassment and bullying by female authors including Zinzi Clemmons, Carmen Maria Machado and Monica Byrne on Twitter on May 4, 2018. Clemmons tweeted that when she was a graduate student, she invited Díaz to speak to a workshop, claiming Díaz used it as an opportunity “to corner and forcibly kiss me.” Tsar Fedorsky/AP

Nev Schulman, 33, the co-host of MTV's "Catfish" was accused of sexual misconduct by show alum Ayissha Morgan, who alleged in a video posted to YouTube on May 12, 2018, that Schulman made several inappropriate sexual comments to her. MTV suspended the show in order to conduct an investigation, according to an emailed statement from the network to USA TODAY on May 17. Schulman denied the allegations. Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Boyd Tinsley, 54, Dave Matthews Band's former violinist, was accused of sexual misconduct by James Frost-Winn, a Seattle-based trumpet player who worked for Tinsley as a member of the band Crystal Garden from about 2015 through 2016, according to a report from online entertainment magazine "Consequence of Sound" on May 17, 2018. Frost-Winn is seeking $9 million in damages against Tinsley, claiming he created a “hostile work environment” by making unwanted advancements and sending explicit texts. DMB denied previously knowing about the allegations. Mike Coppola/Getty Images for Safilo

Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys says he's shocked and saddened by accusations from a singer who said he raped her about 15 years ago. Melissa Schuman, of the girl group Dream, wrote in a blog post Carter that forced her to engage in a sexual act against her will. Amy Harris, Invision/AP

Actor and comedian Andy Dick has been fired from his role in the film 'Raising Buchanan' after he was accused of "groping people’s genitals, unwanted kissing/licking and sexual propositions of at least four members of the production on the set," according to 'The Hollywood Reporter.' Dick denied groping claims, but admitted to licking and propositioning people. Kevork Djansezian, Getty Images

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Anna Graham Hunter alleges that Oscar-winning actor Dustin Hoffman groped her and talked about sex in front of her while she was a 17-year-old intern on the set of his 1985 TV-movie adaptation of 'Death of a Salesman.' Hoffman apologized in a statement to the 'Associated Press,' saying, “I have the utmost respect for women and feel terrible that anything I might have done could have put her in an uncomfortable situation… It is not reflective of who I am.” The following day, a second accuser, Wendy Riss Gatsiounis told 'Variety' the actor made verbal advances and tried to convince her to go to a hotel. Jordan Strauss, Invision/AP

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Andrew Kreisberg, 46, executive producer of CW superhero series Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl and Legends of Tomorrow, was fired by Warner Bros., USA TODAY confirmed Nov. 29. Variety published a story in which 15 women and four men alleged sexual harassment and inappropriate physical contact. Frederick M. Brown, Getty Images

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